Miami, United States | AFP | A precision cancer treatment that targets rare genetic mutations that exist in about 5,000 people in the United States instead of the tumor’s location in the body has shown success in three-quarters of patients, researchers said Wednesday. The medicine, called larotrectinib, is made by …
Read More »Babies born in poorest countries still face ‘alarming’ risks: UNICEF
Washington, United States | AFP | Babies born in the world’s poorest countries, most of them in Africa, still face “alarming” risks of death that can be 50 times as high as those in the richest countries, according to a UNICEF report released Tuesday. While the last quarter-century has seen …
Read More »Myanmar seizes drugs and equipment worth $7 mn in lab raid
Yangon, Myanmar | AFP | Myanmar troops seized $7 million worth of narcotics, precursors and equipment in a raid on drug labs in the restive north, the army said Monday, as it continues a war against ethnic rebels accused of profiting from the drug trade. Soldiers and local officials found …
Read More »Rwanda becomes first poor country to provide eye care for all
In a country where a third of people have sight problems, specialist nurses have visited all 15,000 villages as part of a life-changing project Kampala, Uganda | VERITY BOWMAN | Rwanda has become the first low-income country to provide universal eye care for its population of 12 million people. The …
Read More »After the Mengo Hospital deaths
New guidelines to regulate mushrooming free medical camps Kampala, Uganda | FLAVIA NASSAKA | As early as 9am on Feb.09, people had started gathering at Centenary Park. It was yet another ‘free medical camp’. Organized by the Mulago hospital based College of Health Sciences, people would at this camp get free …
Read More »THIS WEEK: Health Ministry set to burn expired drugs
THIS WEEK: Health Ministry set to burn expired drugs Kampala, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | 1500 tonnes of drugs are set to be burnt by the Ministry of Health after they expired in stores. Without giving specifics what particular drugs are to be burnt, Permanent Secretary Diana Atwiine told journalists on …
Read More »Being a single dad can shorten your life: study
Paris, France | AFP | The risk of dying prematurely more than doubles for single fathers compared to single mothers or paired-up dads, according to a study of Canadian families published Thursday. “Our research highlights that single fathers have higher mortality, and demonstrates the need for public health policies to …
Read More »Linger over lunch to lose weight: study suggests
Paris, France | AFP | People who wolf down their food could lose weight simply by chewing longer and pausing between bites, study results suggested Tuesday. Research involving nearly 60,000 Japanese people showed a link between eating slower or faster, and losing or gaining weight. “Changes in eating speed can affect …
Read More »Govt to dispose of 1,200 tons of expired, unwanted medicines
Kampala, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | The Ministry of Health has embarked on a drive to dispose of expired and obsolete medicines and other health supplies from 6,619 Health facilities in Uganda, both Government owned and Private Not For Profit (PNFP). Currently, the quantities of expired medicines all over …
Read More »Sterile mosquitos released in Miami to battle disease
Miami, United States | AFP | In a bid to cut the population of disease-carrying Aedes aegypti mosquitos, health officials in Miami are releasing millions of their brethren treated with a bacteria that makes them sterile. “Treat them carefully! You don’t want to hurt them,” said South Miami mayor Philip Stoddard …
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